5th ODI – Australia V England – Fantasy Preview

It’s the end of an era for the historic WACA cricket ground in Perth, unveiling the birth of it’s new & improved venue across the Swan River, Perth Stadium. From a series perspective, this match is a dead rubber but promises to be another classic contest nevertheless.

It’s the dawn of a new era for cricket in Western Australia, and for Australian cricket in general when Australia and England will face off in the inaugural match at the newly developed Perth Stadium. Before anyone has even laid a foot on the new ground, it already looks like a phenomenal venue for modern cricket, almost Colosseum like which should help grow twenty20 cricket even more in Perth. Usually pitch conditions favor the home side, but in this case, this drop in wicket is as familiar to the Australians as the unpredictable surfaces in the subcontinent. Down 3-0 in the series, Australia responded in sublime fashion on Australia Day at the Adelaide Oval to claw their way back to 3-1 heading into the Perth ODI. At one stage, the hosts had England 5/8 after winning the toss and electing to field on a warm day. Chris Woakes led the fight back as England limped over the line setting Australia 197 to win, hometown-hero Travis Head made light work of the Poms as he struck 15 boundaries in his commanding knock of 96 as the Aussies had the last laugh.

The pace bowlers were simply outstanding for Australia, once again showing the world why they’re one of the most destructive ODI bowling attacks going around. No Mitchell Starc, no worries – star-duo Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood massacred England’s top & middle order as they sent all four of Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root and Jos Buttler on their way for ducks. Within six overs, the game had almost been decided, credit to England though, they fought back to make a contest out of a game that was pretty much dead and buried inside the first ten overs. South Australia’s Travis Head was impressive in his return, falling just four runs short of his second ODI century which was in reaching distance, he’s performed well in the past at his home ground and yesterday was no different. Australia aren’t without their problems though, David Warner looks to have hit a rough patch while the prolific Steve Smith is also down on his usual input, this could be the perfect time to unleash Glenn Maxwell who has been in ominous touch for the Melbourne Stars in the BBL.

Unexpected is the word that comes to mind after England’s batting performance in the last match, it’s not every day the top four combine for a total of just three runs! It’s just one of those games you have to wipe from the memory bank and move on as quickly as possible, they have an opportunity to respond to that poor performance in Perth tomorrow. Batting at No. 8, Chris Woakes has just about been England’s most consistent batsman in the series with some exciting cameos down the order, they’ll be hoping Jason Roy can find that level of intent in Brisbane where he smashed England’s highest ODI score with a versatile 180. The visitors have the muscle to put together big totals, Roy, Hales, Morgan and Buttler being the aggressors throughout the order are a class above when they get going. Australia probably have the wood over them in the bowling department, although Adil Rashid has been the pick of the spinners in the series with nine wickets to his name, he hasn’t taken less than two wickets in a match so far.

In the fifth & final ODI, we’re expecting the unexpected after what happened in Adelaide the other day, Australia were on the brink of a series whitewash before a pace bowling barrage rejuvenated the green & gold army. The excitement surrounding the new Perth Stadium also adds an element of surprise to the match, this pitch could be a flat track with runs galore on offer, or the bowlers could have an absolute field day with wickets tumbling like a waterfall. The hype & buzz might just be getting to my head surrounding this new stadium, but this may just be the most exciting dead rubber match I’ve ever seen! The ground is almost expected to be at full capacity in it’s first appearance on the big stage, making viewing even more memorizing with the volume of the crowd at fever pitch.

Zak Varik is an Australian columnist/writer who specializes in the sports category cricket. With over four years of experience covering all sorts of cricket tournaments around the world, Zak has gained extensive knowledge in International cricket as well as domestic.
“I’ve loved watching cricket since I was about 7 years old, my childhood hero was none other than Andrew “Roy” Symonds who probably enhanced my love of the game through the years”.
Zak is now an established writer for FCN (Fantasy Cricket News) and has also previously represented other Blogs during his time as a writer.

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